Chapter 17
SEVENTEEN
TESS
The ceremonial hall felt cavernous now, emptied of its mourners and filled only with flickering candlelight and the weight of unspoken truths.
Tess sat rigid in her chair, every muscle locked in place as she fought to maintain the composure that had carried her through the last hour.
She’d projected strength for Queen Lysia, offering silent support while her own emotional walls cracked under the pressure of grief that wasn’t entirely hers.
Hold it together, she commanded herself, but the familiar mantra felt hollow in the sacred space.
King Voran’s open casket drew her gaze like a magnet, the man who’d welcomed her to his table now lying in eternal stillness.
The sight triggered a cascade of memories—her mother’s funeral, the same crushing sense of failure, the same desperate wish that she could have done more, been better, saved someone who deserved to live.
But beneath the grief lurked something more volatile—a fury that burned hot and bright in her chest. Korran’s dismissal yesterday still stung like an open wound.
After everything between us, that’s what he chose to do? He doesn’t want me here.
Tess pressed her lips together, holding back the words she’d wanted to say to him for the past twenty-four hours. Not here, not now, not with his father’s body between them like a reminder of everything she’d failed to accomplish.
She needed air. She needed space. She needed to scream at someone about the unfairness of it all—how she’d come here to save a life and instead found herself falling for a man who believed her very existence was a threat. But King Voran deserved better than her emotional breakdown right now.
Tess rose slowly, her legs unsteady after sitting in tense stillness for so long. She moved toward the casket with measured steps, each footfall echoing in the hushed space. Korran remained seated, his frame hunched forward as if the weight of kingship had already settled on his shoulders.
King Voran looked peaceful in death, his weathered face relaxed in a way she’d never seen during their brief acquaintance.
The deep lines of pain that had marked his features were smoothed away, leaving behind the strong bone structure that spoke to decades of leadership and the quiet dignity that had made him beloved by his people.
You deserved so much more time, she thought, her hands trembling as she gripped the edge of the casket.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t save you,” she whispered, her voice barely audible in the vast space. “But I swear to you, I’ll find out what really happened. I’ll uncover the truth, no matter what it costs me.”
The vow felt sacred in the candlelit silence, a promise made not just to a dead king but to herself.
Whatever was happening between her and Korran, whatever political games were being played in the shadows of this territory, she wouldn’t leave until she’d exposed every lie that had contributed to this man’s death.
A familiar presence moved behind her, and suddenly Korran was there, his warmth radiating against her back. The bond pulsed between them, stronger now in their shared grief, and Tess found herself leaning slightly toward him before catching herself.
Don’t. He made his choice yesterday.
But when Korran reached out with reverent fingers to touch his father’s lifeless hand, something in Tess’s chest cracked open. The powerful prince who commanded respect through mere presence looked suddenly young and lost, his careful control stripped away by the finality of death.
“I’m sorry, Father,” he said, his deep voice rough with emotion. “I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you. I’m sorry I let politics and fear cloud my judgment when you needed me most.”
His words hit Tess like physical blows. This wasn’t just grief—it was guilt, the same crushing weight she’d carried after her mother’s death. The terrible knowledge that maybe, if she’d been smarter or faster or better, she could have changed everything.
“I should have questioned Varix sooner,” Korran continued, his voice breaking. “Should have demanded to see the data myself instead of trusting what everyone told me. Should have fought harder for answers instead of accepting that your illness was inevitable.”
Tears tracked down his cheeks, and something inside Tess shattered completely. This wasn’t the controlled prince or the commanding future king—this was a son saying goodbye to his father, raw and vulnerable in a way that made her heart ache.
Without thinking, she reached up and brushed the tears from his face with gentle fingers. His skin was warm beneath her touch, and when he leaned into her palm with a shuddering breath, their bond flared between them like lightning.
“Tess,” he whispered, and then his arms were around her, pulling her against his massive chest as if she were the only thing anchoring him to the world.
She held him fiercely, pouring every ounce of strength she possessed into the embrace. This was what she could give him—not just comfort, but proof that he wasn’t alone in his grief, that someone understood the crushing weight of failure and the desperate need to make things right.
For long moments they held each other in the sacred space, sharing grief and strength in equal measure. Tess felt the tremors that ran through his powerful frame, felt the way his breathing gradually steadied as her presence worked some kind of magic she didn’t fully understand.
When he finally pulled back, his dark eyes were red-rimmed but clear, focused on her face with an intensity that made her breath catch.
“There’s something I need to tell you,” he said, his voice hoarse but determined. “Something I should have confessed days ago, but I was too scared of the truth and what it meant.”
Tess’s heart hammered against her ribs. The way he looked at her, the careful way he spoke—this was important. Life-changing important.
“What is it?” she asked softly.
“Tess,” he said, her name a reverent whisper on his lips. “You’re my fated mate.”
The words hit her like a punch, sending her stumbling backward even as her mind raced to process what he’d said.
Fated mate. Of course.
It made perfect sense—the instant recognition, the electrical charge every time they touched, the way her body had responded to his with desperate hunger, the strange humming in her blood that intensified whenever he was near.
“Are you sure?” she asked, her voice barely steady.
“Yes.” The certainty in his voice was absolute. “The moment we shook hands, the mate bond activated. It’s been growing stronger every day, and I can’t deny it anymore. I don’t want to keep running from it.”
“But you believe the human-shifter mate bond is harmful,” she said, her scientific mind grappling with the implications. “Just like Varix claims about your father’s illness. Just like your clan has been conditioned to believe, despite the evidence of your parents’ strong bond.”
Korran’s jaw clenched, but his eyes never left her face. “I know. And I was a fool to let the council’s rhetoric and the clan’s prejudice dictate my worldview for so long. But I can’t deny what’s between us, Tess. I can’t deny what I feel for you.”
The confession sent her world tilting off its axis. Everything she’d thought she understood about their situation, about his rejection, about the impossibility of their connection—all of it rearranged itself into a new pattern that left her breathless.
Queen Lysia knew.
The realization hit her with stunning force. Yesterday, when the queen had smiled and said Tess had “natural queen energy,” she’d been talking about the mate bond. She’d known her son had found his fated mate and was fighting it.
Did Gerri know too?
The thought sent panic racing through her veins. Had she been manipulated from the very beginning? Brought here not just to save a king, but to claim a prince who didn’t want to be claimed?
The walls of the ceremonial hall suddenly felt too close, the air too thick. She needed space to think, to process, to figure out what this meant for everything she’d thought she wanted.
“I need air,” she gasped, grabbing her coat from the chair where she’d left it.
She rushed toward the massive doors, her heels clicking against the stone floor.
But Korran was right behind her, his longer strides easily keeping pace as they burst through the entrance into the crystalline winter air.
The cold hit her like a slap, sharp and clean after the heavy atmosphere of grief and revelation.
“So what—how is it possible that I’m your fated mate?” she demanded, spinning to face him. “Did Gerri know? Did she seek me out and bring me here because of that?”
Korran’s breath misted in the frigid air as he studied her face. “I don’t understand Gerri’s methods, but she certainly sought you out because you’re the only one who could help my father and prove to this territory that humans aren’t weak. Maybe Gerri knew what she was doing, but does it matter?”
Tess stared at him, this impossibly powerful man who’d just confessed that fate had bound them together, and felt something settle into place inside her chest. Maybe Gerri was a meddling woman with supernatural abilities.
Maybe she’d orchestrated this entire situation from the beginning.
But the truth was simpler and more profound than any manipulation.
She was here now, on Nova Aurora, falling madly in love with the bear prince of the Northern Dominion. And King Voran deserved justice, regardless of what cosmic forces had brought her here.
Korran watched her with the careful stillness of a predator, his dark eyes reflecting both hope and fear. He expected rejection—she could see it in the tense line of his shoulders, the way he held himself ready for her to walk away. Instead, she moved toward his SUV.
“Can you take me back to the estate?”